What Course Thou Wilt
by Tamane Deverel
Summary: Sequel to Eyes To See. Sunnydale falls into chaos when a vengeful Djinn is unleashed upon the town. Meanwhile, El Reclusa Sangre discovers that an artifact he desires is located in the Sunnydale High Library.
1. Wish Upon A Djinn

_Do not own Buffy the Vampire Slayer; this goes for the entire story, because even if I end up with ownership of Buffy someday (doubtful) I can pretty much guarantee it won't be while this story is being written. I do own James McAnon and El Reclusa Sangre; I do not own anything else in this story._

_Here we are; Episode 2! Fun, right? I know I'm excited! Remember; Reviews would be appreciated! _

_Also; the title of both this episode and the last one are derived from Shakespeare quotes. If anyone wants to, feel free to try and guess what works they are from!_

_Let's go!_

###

The warehouse was mostly empty; some boxes were stacked against the walls, and there were a few of the metal racks that would have held more boxes had they existed; but all of the containers had been cleared away to allow for more space for the vampire and his minions.

The vampire in question stood near the center of the empty space, supervising the drawing of a summoning circle. El Reclusa Sangre's hand clutched the golden ring he held as part of his plan. And, if necessary, leverage. He wasn't scared of the creature he was intending to summon, but he preferred that the negotiations go over without violence.

As he thought that, his second in command, a vampire known as Horatio, stepped up to him. "The circle is complete, master."

The Spanish vampire nodded at his favorite minion. "My thanks, Horatio." Stepping around his lieutenant, he made his way to the summoning circle. Glancing at the vampires positioned around the circle, he signaled them to begin.

One vampire lit the incense, and suddenly the smell of a dry desert filled his nostrils. Slipping the ring onto his hand, Reclusa held his arms out toward the circle, and began channeling magic. A faint golden glow clustered around the elaborate golden ring, but most of the magic flowed out from him and into the circle. Clearing his throat, the vampiric mage began chanting in a very ancient form of an Eastern language. His voice-a clear, attractive baritone- rang out around the near-empty warehouse, gradually increasing in cadence and volume.

As Reclusa's voice hit a peak, a blinding light burst into existence in the center of the circle, accompanied by the distinct sound of a sandstorm. Actual sand whipped out of the light, driven by raging winds for the few seconds that the display lasted. However, the light and wind dwindled rapidly, and a few seconds later, they were gone, leaving what appeared to be a man exposed to the summoners.

The man was tall, dressed in a black modern suit, and had very dark skin. He was bald and clean shaven. The creature appeared to be a normal mortal being-until one looked into his eyes, which were the golden color of the desert sands when hit by the first light of day. His head slowly rose, his gaze tracking across the floor until it hit Reclusa's boots. From there, the gaze rose up the master vampires' body and rested on his face. The summoned man's eyes shifted a little in recognition.

"Castillo." He spoke in a quiet voice that somehow carried across the room more clearly than if he had shouted.

Reclusa shook his head. "I no longer go by that name. I am now called El Reclusa Sangre." He informed the man.

A small smile crossed the man's face at the name. "Of course. It fits." He murmured. Then the smile faded away. "What is it you want?"

Sangre smiled. "I want a wish, of course."

The black man raised an eyebrow. "You haven't asked for one of those since…" He trailed off, trying to remember.

Sangre smiled. "Since you created a new breed of vampire."

The man in the circle smiled again, this one containing just a hint of threat. "Are you sure you want to take a chance?"

Sangre shook his head. "It would not be a chance; after all, you know better than to attempt to threaten me. But, threats aside, I actually wanted to make a deal with you."

The black man raised another eyebrow. "What type of deal?"

"Simple." Sangre began as he started pacing. "You grant me one wish. I will set you free for one day, with…selective hearing, as far as your wishes go."

The called being nodded his head slowly. "Is that all?" His voice was suspicious.

"There is one other stipulation." Sangre held up a finger. "You must not interfere with my designs in any way."

The prisoner in the circle smiled. "Acceptable terms. But how do you plan to give me my temporary freedom?"

Sangre grinned and wordlessly held out his hand. In it lay the golden ring Sangre had had Horatio retrieve from the Sunnydale Art Gallery.

The dark-skinned one gasped in wonder. "My ring." His voice trembled with incredulous joy. "You are offering me my own ring?" He only had eyes for the small, intricate ring.

"Grant me my wish, and swear not to interfere with me, and it is yours." Sangre affirmed.

"Done. What is your wish?" The dark-skinned creature strode over to the edge of the circle, licking his lips in anticipation as he reached for the ring.

Sangre closed his hand. "Wish first, then ring."

"Then tell me already." The summoned being demanded impatiently.

A smile crossed the master vampires' face. "I wish that the components of the artifact that I seek were all right before me, whole and working."

There was a second of silence, a blur of magic…then nothing. The creature shook its' head. "The pieces are all warded against my people, among other things. We cannot retrieve them magically, not even through a Wish."

Sangre nodded thoughtfully, stroking his chin. "I see. That is disappointing. However I do know that there is one here in this town; I may as well begin with that one." He turned back to his new temporary ally. "I wish that I knew where the piece that lies within this town is located."

There was another blur of magic, and a light blue spark flew from the dark-skinned man to Sangre. The vampire instantly collapsed to one knee as a vision entered his head.

He remained there for several seconds, before slowly rising, a smile across his face. As he reached his full stature, he let out a small chuckle. "Of course. Who would have thought that it would be hidden in a school library?"

Sangre's opposite made an impatient gesture. "Your wish has been granted. Now grant me my freedom."

Sangre nodded graciously. "Yes, of course." He swiftly dropped the ring into the waiting hand and turned to leave.

Before he got very far, though, he felt a powerful burst of magic and heat at his back. Turning back to look, he saw that the being he had summoned had slipped the ring on, and was glowing once again. The glow spread out from him, coursing through the channels in the floor that formed the restraining circle. As the light passed through the portions of the circle, the designs disappeared without a trace. It wasn't long before the gold light had shattered the seal completely, and Sangre's business partner stood where the circle had been, a look of triumph on his face.

"Raad Al Kasif is free!" He cried joyously. And with that, the Djinn vanished, prepared to enjoy his freedom at the expense of the mortals that had trapped him.

The Bronze was busy tonight. Not surprising, considering the establishments' lack of competition in Sunnydale. The music was pumping through the speakers at nearly full-blast, louder than usual, as the patrons took in the melodies of the live band on stage, making it difficult for the customers to talk.

And, making one particular member of the demon-hunting Scooby gang rather uncomfortable.

"You guys actually hang out here?" James McAnon shouted to be heard by his friends.

"Yeah. What's wrong with the Bronze?" Buffy could barely hear James over the loud music, but she still couldn't have mistaken his tone of incredulity, and felt a little offended on behalf of the only club in Sunnydale.

"Maybe the whole shouting to be heard thing?!" James commented, gesturing at the speakers placed for optimum hearing range all around the club.

"It's not that bad!" Buffy replied defensively. "I mean, when the band isn't playing, it's easy to talk!"

James raised an eyebrow. "That's a pretty big qualifier, Buffy. And besides; there are way too many people out here for me!" He shouted back.

"Seriously?" Buffy asked. "Too many people?"

"Yeah!" James nodded emphatically. "My idea of a relaxing night is closer to grabbing some sodas, some chips, flipping on the country music, and reading a good book. Or else watching a musical." He informed the blonde.

"You're kidding!" Buffy exclaimed, disbelieving.

"Nope." James denied.

Buffy shook her head at her newest friends' strange ways, before a thought occurred to her. Switching topics of conversation, she asked, "So, hey; did Snyder ever come up with a punishment for you guys breaking into the police station?"

James nodded and rolled his eyes exaggeratedly. "Yeah. And you are not going to believe it."

Buffy shrugged. "Try me. There's not a lot Snyder could do that I wouldn't believe."

James sighed in irritation. "Okay, so get this; he's basically made Willow, Xander and I his unpaid interns."

Buffy shot him a confused look. "What?"

James rubbed his forehead as he began explaining. "Basically, if he needs anything done that isn't strictly academic and can be considered mostly legal, he can make us do it."

Buffy frowned. "Like what? And is that even legal?"

James shrugged. "Who knows? He's got the Mayor's leave to do just about anything that A) isn't expelling us, and B) doesn't offend the Mayor. So, Snyder basically did the equivalent of smacking us with community service as a punishment. And a good example of what is that the freshman biology trip to the zoo has not had the required amount of chaperones for tomorrow. So, apparently, Snyder can give us excused absences in order to be replacement chaperones. Which no, I don't think actually _is_ legal. But with the Mayor on his side, what can you do?"

Sitting across from the two, Xander and Willow watched, amused, as the two settled into commiserating about their iron-fisted principle. Making sure they were distracted by the unfairness of Snyder's punishments, Xander turned to his oldest friend, clearly nervous.

"Hey, Wills? Can I, uh, get your opinion on something?" He asked uncertainly.

A smile lit up Willow's face. "Sure, Xander! What is it?"

He held up a pair of inexpensive, yet still attractive silver earrings. "What do you think?"

Willow felt happiness suddenly bloom in her chest. "Oh my…! For me? Thank you, Xander!" The red-head bubbled.

Xander felt a flash of chagrin at the misunderstanding. "Actually, Wills…they're for Buffy. Sorry…" He trailed off.

The happiness Willow felt just seconds earlier self-destructed and was replaced by a potent combination of jealousy, frustration, and mild depression. "Oh. It's okay…I think she'd like them."

Xander smiled widely, oblivious to his friends' reaction. "Thanks, Will! I'm thinking of giving them to her tonight; maybe she'll finally, you know…go out with me." His smile became nervous at the thought of presenting his present to his crush. Then, another feeling came over him. "Oh, uh…be right back; gotta use the bathroom." With that he slipped the earrings back into a pocket, stood up, and made his way through the crowds of dancing teens.

When he had left, Willow let the frustration overwhelm her. She had been waiting for him for years now, hoping that he would notice her, but no; he just kept chasing after _Buffy_! Not that the Slayer wasn't great and all, but…who knew Xander the best? Who remembered the yellow crayon? Willow did. Who helped found the We Hate Cordelia Club? Who had actually been there when Xander's clown fear started? That was Willow too. Who had Xander falling head-over-heels? _Buffy!_

Willow sighed as the frustration ebbed, giving way to a crushing despair. She had begun to doubt-once again-if she shouldn't just move on with her life. Xander was a lost cause, she was pretty sure; yet she just couldn't dredge up the willpower to move on.

She felt the frustration return, joining forces with the despair. She could feel the familiar prick of forming tears in her eyes, and suddenly was keenly aware of the masses of people and noise pressing uncomfortably close to her. In a snap decision, Willow stood up, grabbed her bag, and made her way to and out of the door of the Bronze.

It was several minutes later that James broke away from his debate with Buffy to see if he couldn't spend time with his own crush when James noticed Willow's absence. He sought out the red-headed hacker, but couldn't find her anywhere.

"Hey, Buffy? Did you see where Willow went?" He asked the Slayer, suddenly nervous.

###

Even in the dark, Willow had managed to find her way to a bench in a park not _too_ far from her home before the tears had finally overwhelmed her, and she'd needed to sit down. The bench was situated just off to the side of a streetlight, allowing her some illumination. A part of her was yelling at her, telling her to get up and go home before a vampire or some other night-time nasty found her, but that part of her brain wasn't doing so well at translating thought into action.

As she tried in vain to regain control of herself so she could find a safe place, Willow failed to hear footsteps approach her. Yet when she noticed a shadow enter the pool of light the streetlight cast at her feet, she looked u- to see a tall black man, bald and clean shaven. He was dressed in a black suit, and looked entirely normal. She looked into his light brown-when she tilted her head, they looked gold, she noticed distantly-eyes, confused about his presence. Most people in Sunnydale, if they were smart, didn't go out after dark. Okay, she was here, but she hadn't been thinking properly anyway.

"I heard you crying." The man said in a quiet yet firm voice. "What is wrong?" He sat down beside her.

Willow suddenly felt a strong desire to tell this man her problems. An attentive ear might make her feel better, and wasn't something she could have under normal circumstances. Sure, Buffy listened, but at the same time, the blonde Slayer was usually also worrying about something supernatural, or mooning over her own sort-of boyfriend Angel, so didn't usually give Willow her full attention. She could hardly talk to Xander about it, since he was the source of her problems, and Buffy had pointed out how James liked her, so Willow thought it would be awkward if she tried to talk to him about Xander not noticing her. And way too similar to Xander talking to her about Buffy…

Even as Willow contemplated all of this, words came pouring into the open like a leak on the Titanic. It started out slow, but Willow quickly found herself describing her problem to this man in great detail.

"And sometimes, it's just too much! I mean, am I supposed to wait for him forever?" Willow lamented to her audience. "I just…" She began.

"Yes?" The man asked, a gleam of excitement suddenly appearing in his eye.

"I wish that Xander would stop being so interested in Buffy and just love me already!" Willow cried out as the tears began flowing once again.

Because Willow was sobbing loudly, she failed to hear the whisper on the wind as the black man who had kindly listened to her problems just…vanished. The whisper that said, "As you wish."

###

The next morning Xander woke up feeling strange. He didn't know exactly what was wrong, other than the fact that he felt sort of…disconnected from the world around him. He still saw and heard everything as normal, but he found it just a little harder to care.

By the time he got to school, he was starting to feel just a little concerned about it. Perhaps that was due to the fact that, thanks to his strange distance from the world, he'd barely managed to remember to look before crossing the street. He'd just remembered to stop and check when a semi passed in front of him. He was aware enough to realize that it would have hit him if he'd tried crossing the street like he'd originally planned.

It was about then that he realized that he should probably talk to Giles about it, just in case he'd gotten whammied by some mystical extreme-lack-of-caring spell or something. With his luck regarding the supernatural, he wouldn't have been too surprised.

The thing was, he'd intended to talk to Giles about it, he really had…until he entered the library, and the disconnected feeling had disappeared as he was completely blown away.

He'd been examining the library as he entered, his eyes doing the automatic environment-check, just to see if anything had changed, when his eyes landed on his best friend. And suddenly, nothing else seemed to matter. He felt tidal waves of love and affection pouring over and through him just by looking at her, and suddenly, he wanted…no, wanted wasn't powerful enough to express his feelings. He _needed_ to get closer to her, talk to her, to hold her.

###

Willow was studiously doing her homework for computer science when Xander surprised her. She'd been typing out her essay and hadn't heard him come up behind her, and all of a sudden she felt someone embracing her. She panicked for a split second, before she heard her oldest friend mutter in her ear. "Hey, Wills. Whatcha up to?"

"Oh; Xander!" Willow straightened up, feeling a little shiver run down her spine at the close proximity. "Good morning. How are you doing?"

Xander easily slid into the chair next to her, and spun it so that he was facing her direction instead of the table. "Much better now that I'm here with you." He told her, making her blush grow even more fierce.

"Oh! That's nice!" Willow replied, her heart jumping a little in her chest.

Suddenly, Xander seemed to grow a little bit more uncomfortable. A little nervous. "Hey, um, Willow…I know you liked them so I, uh, wanted to give you these." Raising his hand, he revealed the earrings he'd told her he was going to give Buffy last night at the Bronze.

Willow tilted her head, momentary confusion overtaking happiness. "But I thought those were for Buffy?"

Xander nodded. "They were yesterday, sure. But I didn't get the chance to give them to her last night, and when I saw you this morning, well…I just realized how much you mean to me." He paused, took a deep breath, and let it out, as if he was preparing for something. Willow, already over-joyed by his declaration, reached over and took the earrings. She was so lost in appreciating them, she almost didn't notice when her crush began talking again. She probably wouldn't have, if Xander hadn't taken her hands and looked her dead in the eyes.

"Willow…I gave you those earrings because I finally realized what I should have seen a long time ago. Willow Rosenberg…I love you." He told her seriously.

There was a split-second where Willow could have sworn her heart had stopped from sheer surprise. The next second, though, it started up again from sheer joy-and that joy only magnified when Xander leaned in close, and kissed her, warmly and firmly, on the lips. Happiness, joy, and surprise surged through Willow's being as she felt his lips pressed against hers-and then the surprise faded, and she responded enthusiastically.

They separated, chests heaving from holding breath and faces flushed with excitement and passion. Willow could only stare at Xander in a mixture of joy and disbelief as she tried and failed to martial her scattered thoughts into some coherent form.

"Hey guys; what's up?" Buffy asked, completely ruining the moment. "Hey, Buffy." She replied-and though the moment may have been ruined, she still couldn't help the smile plastered on her face, or the chipper tone that graced her voice.

"Hey Buffy." Xander responded dismissively. Buffy raised an eyebrow in surprise at her friends' disinterest.

"Something up, Xand?" She inquired.

His only response was a vague shrug.

Buffy had just opened her mouth to let her annoyance be known when the school bell rang. Swallowing her irritation, Buffy gave a 'let's go' gesture to her friends. She led them outside and turned back to say goodbye as Xander was about to head off to his first period class that they didn't share- and her mouth dropped agape when she saw Xander step in close and give Willow a brief kiss on the lips before turning and leaving the two girls behind.

###

Lunchtime found Buffy and Willow seated together at the same table, waiting for the other two members of their group to arrive. Seeing that they were alone, Buffy took the opportunity for some quality interrogation.

"So; tell me. Xander smoochies? How, when, why? Go." Buffy demanded of her friend as soon as she ascertained a lack of eavesdroppers.

Willow shrugged as a blissful smile crossed her face. "Just this morning, in the library, before you came in. He gave me these," Willow produced the earrings Xander had given her as she spoke, "told me he loved me, and kissed me." She sighed. "I think that this is the best day of my life!" She confided in her best friend.

"Sounds good. Why's that?" James asked as he sat down in the seat next to Willow's.

Buffy frowned. "Xander's acting weird. I can't say I completely like it, to be honest. He was being really rude earlier, and acting like I didn't exist."

Willow scowled at her friend. "You just don't like it because Xander's finally paying more attention to me than you!"

Both of her friends looked at her in shock. "Um, Willow? In case you forgot, I've been trying to help get the guy to notice you since day one. It's just that now that he _has_ noticed you, he's acting like kind of a jerk to me." Buffy pointed out.

Willow nodded apologetically. "You're right…sorry, Buffy. But sometimes, resentment just builds." She shrugged helplessly. Buffy nodded and responded comfortingly. "Hey, I don't really blame you. The boy of your dreams has been pining over me for the past year."

James glanced between his two females friends. "So, where is Xander anyway?" He asked.

Willow twisted in her seat, searching the cafeteria, and singled out a figure with dark hair making a beeline for their table. "There he is!" She exclaimed, features immediately brightening.

Xander made his way over to their table-and stopped. He gave James a light scowl, grabbed a chair from another table, and wedged it between James and Willow. Then he plopped down on it and immediately turned to Willow.

It was then that Buffy noticed something strange. "Hey, Xander; why didn't you grab a lunch?"

He gave no answer.

"Xander, what is your deal today?!" Buffy raised her voice at him-and still failed to get a reaction.

"Hey, Xander; why didn't you get lunch today?" James jumped in, noting Xander's lack of reaction to Buffy.

Xander half-turned enough to see James, but not enough to have turned away from Willow. "Wasn't interested. I just want to be with Willow."

James shared a glance with Buffy. Something was _definitely_ up with Xander. First, ignoring Buffy completely, and then not getting food when he had the chance? There was no other conclusion.

###

It was then that, just across the lunchroom, Larry Blaisdell was walking away from his most recent bullying victim. The victim who clenched his fists, and muttered under his breath, "I wish I was strong enough to get back at him."

Just like Willow before him, he didn't hear the whisper on the sudden, illogical breeze. "As you wish."

###

It was just then that, with a loud crash, a tall, muscular, orange-skinned demon with bony, protruding shoulders and curved horns on the sides of its' head appeared across the lunchroom from the Slayer and her friends.

Buffy turned around to see the demon stand up and charge after Larry, who turned around-and screamed like a girl.

"You have got to be kidding me." Buffy groaned as she stood up, ready to do battle.


	2. Third's The Charm

_Remember; reviews are nice! (And I decided to do just one disclaimer at the beginning of the story this time; it saves time and space.)_

_ ###_

The demon didn't know what hit it. It had been distracted with a particular human prey-Larry, not that any of the Scoobies noticed-and so hadn't seen Buffy approaching it from behind. And so, when the Slayer had slung a cafeteria chair at the back of its head, the demon stumbled and nearly fell. In response, it whipped around and let out a low growl.

"Come on." Buffy made a challenging gesture as she waited for her opponent to make the first move.

She didn't have to wait long.

The demon-apparently not overly blessed with brains-let out a bellow and charged directly at her. Buffy tried to leap out of the way, but tripped on the back of a chair and fell.

Roaring, the demon marched over, picked her up by the midriff, and threw her across the room. She slammed into the wall with a grunt, and stuck for a second. When gravity took over after a brief moment, Buffy landed on a table that had been vacated while managing to keep her balance.

Her opponent was already making his way over to her, simply wading through the tables and chairs like they were made of air. As she looked up at it, the demon reared its' head back, and brought it forward. As its' head was most of the way through the motion, what looked like mucus shot out at her. Diving to the side, Buffy hit the ground and rolled to her feet. Glancing back at the wall-which now had a sizeable chunk of mucus on it-she wrinkled her nose. "Ewww." She commented to her opponent. "Couldn't your super-power be a little _less_ disgusting?"

While she spoke, the demon began determinedly closing the distance between the two combatants. As it reached her, it drew back for a haymaker, and delivered the crushing blow. Buffy ducked to the left, and delivered a punch to her opponents' side. Un-phased, the demon whirled around, intending to catch the Slayer with a surprise hook, but she dodged by falling to the floor. Catching herself before she hit fully, she contracted and delivered a punishing kick to the side of its knee. Her foe barely stumbled as it raised a fist and brought it crashing down toward Buffy. Swiftly, she pushed off with one hand and twirled to the right, regaining her feet. By the time she had, the demon had riposted as well, and it swung its right arm at her head haphazardly. Buffy barely even had to duck to dodge it, and she popped back up immediately after with a powerful high kick to the transformed teens' sternum. It stumbled back, and Buffy followed through. Because it had long arms, she kept close, inside its' guard. It tried to punch at her, but failed to raise much momentum due to the small distance between them, resulting in punches that felt like they were delivered by a normal human body builder.

As soon as she closed in on the demon, however, Buffy went on the offensive. Swarming her enemy with short, sharp punches and the occasional strategically placed kick, she began forcing the dull but strong demon away from the few students that were still cowering behind tables in the room.

At least, that's how it was going, until the demon managed to maneuver its arm between itself and Buffy. When one of Buffy's kicks landed on the arm instead of its chest, the demon pushed its arm toward the ceiling. Buffy lost her balance as she was forced into an unexpected flip. She groaned as her back hit the ground hard. Looking up, she saw her enemy advancing quickly. Remembering what happened a few weeks ago when another large demon had her pinned, Buffy quickly rolled to the side, landing on her knees. Scrambling up and away from her pursuer, she only barely managed to duck as a cafeteria table was sent flying after her. A cry went up from a group of students that hadn't yet managed to escape the cafeteria as the table landed in their midst, scattering them.

Buffy whirled around to face the demonic marauder. She had to end this fast, before more people got hurt.

"Come on, big guy; let's dance." Buffy quipped as she raced toward her opponent. Another ball of mucus shot toward her, but she managed to duck out of the way without losing her balance.

As she approached the demon, she swerved to the side and jumped onto a table. Dashing across it, she took a flying leap.

Seeing her aerial approach, her enemy swung a fist toward the Slayer, intending to knock her out of the air. However, it had misjudged her rate of approach, and missed by a hair.

Buffy turned her jump into a flying kick, sailing into the transformed students' chest and following it to the floor. Straddling its' chest, she raised her fist, intending to crush the muscular creatures' head. She brought her fist down-to stop an inch from the face of a human teenager.

"What the heck?" She asked, confused, as she got off of her classmate.

Just then, Xander, Willow, and James re-entered the cafeteria, Giles trailing close behind them.

###

"So what happened?" Buffy asked from her seat in the library. "And what was that thing you were?" The second question was directed at Sam Falen, the student who had transformed into and back from the demon.

The young man in question shrugged. "I don't know the answer to either, really. I just know that one second, I was wishing that I could beat Larry into the ground, and the next…well, I was trying to. It's kind of hard to recall anything more than that. I mean, I do remember the fight and all, but…the memories just seem a little off. You know?" He replied.

"Alright. Well, that was helpful." Xander commented from his position _very_ close to Willow.

"Whilst Samuel's memories may not be as helpful as we may wish, Buffy's description of the fight is much more useful." Giles began as he strode out of the stacks, reading a thick book. "There are several demons with that level of strength, but not many types are particularly common. That narrowed it down somewhat. The key, however, was Buffy's description of how the demon attempted to use mucus against her." He made it to the table, and set the book down, revealing a picture of the very species of demon Sam had been several minutes ago. "These are called Fyarl demons. The only true weakness I have found recorded here is to silver; as such, if we are going to encounter natural Fyarl demons, we may need a silver weapon." He broke off and gave James an 'I told you so' look for a few seconds before resuming. "They are very strong, and can utilize a paralyzing mucus. If the mucus dries, the result is a very strong crust over whatever was hit."

Buffy made a face. "Remind me to apologize to the janitors."

Willow lit up. "Oh, I know! We can bake them cookies as a kind of, 'I'm sorry a demon destroyed the cafeteria' present!" A smile instantly spread over Xander's face.

"Oh, that's a great idea, Wills!" He declared as he looked at her with an undisguised expression of love.

"So, if I can't help…can I go to class now?" Sam asked tentatively.

"Yes, you may." Giles waved the student away.

When Sam had left the room, James spoke up. "So, he mentioned that he wanted to beat Larry up, and then he was going after him. Do you think that could be it? Some sort of… desire demon-type thing?"

Giles frowned. "Desire demon? I believe that your terminology may need some…updating, I believe is the word. A desire demon would be a succubus or an incubus. What you are referring to is a, a wish-granting demon of some sort. Like…hmmm…" A thoughtful expression crossed the Watcher's face and he bent down, flipping through the tome in front of him earnestly.

Suddenly, he made a noise of satisfaction and held a single finger up. "I may have found it. Listen; 'Vengeance demons have the power to grant wishes to those that have been wronged, and lay in the bailiwick of a particular demon.' I believe this may be the demon we are searching for. Samuel was wronged by Mr. Blaisdell, and he made a wish. Perhaps a vengeance demon was there to grant it." Giles explained.

James was about to offer an opinion when he was interrupted by Willow gasping out in a slightly panicked voice, "What time is it?!"

Startled, Giles checked his watch. "It is, um, 12:40. Why does it matter?"

Willow's eyes sought out James' as she grasped Xander's hand. "Because we need to be getting on the buses for the zoo field trip in ten minutes!"

James' palm slapped against his forehead as he moaned out, "Right! The internship deal."

Giles frowned. "What is this about an internship?"

"It's a simile. Buff can explain it to you; we need to go." James responded, gathering his things and to follow Willow and Xander out of the library.

Giles turned to his Slayer, eyebrow raised. "Internship?"

"It's their punishment for getting caught looking at bodies a few weeks ago. Snyder can make them do things that students aren't normally supposed to do. For example, today he's having them fill in for some absentee chaperones on a biology trip." Buffy explained to the librarian. The Brit nodded and turned back to his book.

"Well; I suppose we can get along well enough without them for now. We may have the culprit; we just need to ascertain a weak spot." Giles announced. He then pulled up a chair and settled into it, reading his book intently.

Buffy glanced around the room while her Watcher researched. In less than a minute, she let out a sigh and turned to him. "So, am I supposed to help with the research, or what?"

Giles looked up at that. "Um, what?" Then Buffy's words sank in, and he nodded. "Oh, yes, right. Here." Pulling a pen and a pocket notepad out of one of the pockets in his tweed coat, Giles quickly wrote out a few words in a list. Putting the pen away, he handed the notepad to Buffy. She glanced down on it to see several volume names on it.

"So, I'm guessing that I'm supposed to go find these?" She asked, waving the notepad in the air. Giles nodded absently in response, absorbed in the tome he was investigating. "Yes, that's it." Was all he said.

Buffy searched out the books on the list and found her way back to the table twenty minutes later. As she sat down, she spoke. "Hey, Giles; I just had a thought."

"Lord preserve us." Giles muttered un-seriously. He then raised his voice and asked, "Yes, Buffy? What is it?"

"Well," she began with a frown, "How often do vengeance demons come around to the same place?"

Giles flipped back a page and peered down at the book. "Um, well, here it says whenever someone is wronged in a particular demons' bailiwick. Why?"

Buffy shrugged. "I was just wondering how common it was for them to come around, because we've got two wishes granted in as many days."

Giles was shocked. "What? How-how do you know that? I know of Samuel's wish that resulted in his transformation into a Fyarl demon, but what other wish has been granted?"

"Well, Xander's been acting really weird today. For one thing, he's been doing his best to pretend I don't exist. For another thing, out of nowhere earlier today, he tells Willow he loves her and kisses her on the lips!" Buffy exclaimed.

"Oh good lord; Xander has a girlfriend. The apocalypse must be approaching again." The Watcher replied.

Buffy frowned. "Giles, it isn't just that. I mean, he's completely ignoring me, he didn't eat lunch today, and earlier it looked like he wanted to get into a fight with James just for sitting next to Willow. That doesn't sound like Xander.

Giles sighed. "Buffy, aberrant behavior patterns don't necessarily indicate a supernatural occurrence."

The Slayer frowned, not comprehending the high diction. "Umm…what?"

Giles rubbed the corners of his eyes. "I mean that someone behaving oddly doesn't mean that there is definite mystical activity on its own. It is quite possible Xander is simply…behaving oddly."

"Really, Giles? I remember having this conversation with you before." Buffy reminded him.

"Yes, I do believe we had a similar conversation last year." Giles agreed.

Buffy nodded. "And remember what happened then?"

Giles thought for a few moments. "That was the Primal possession, wasn't it?"

Buffy nodded again in confirmation. "Right. Last time you said it was just Xander acting weird, he was possessed by a hyena spirit. Maybe you should listen this time?" She suggested.

Giles blinked in surprise, but then capitulated. "Um, yes, you ah, have a point." The Watcher frowned as he contemplated Buffy's point, though. "But according to Samuel, the catalyst for his wish would be Mr. Blaisdell's bullying. I think it is fair to say that, if Willow wished for Xander's love, as you seem to be implying, that the odds are against bullying being the catalyst for her own wish. But that would indicate that there are two vengeance demons in the same area which, according to the books, is completely unprecedented."

Buffy let out a low whistle. "Two for one, huh? Well, that sounds like bad news."

"I believe that qualifies as an understatement." Giles remarked dryly. "As indicated by the name, vengeance demons are not pleasant to be around, even when not 'on the clock', as it were."

Buffy nodded and, with a long-suffering sigh, cracked open the first of the books she'd fetched. "Okay. Besides granting wishes, what powers do vengeance demons have?" She inquired.

Giles took off his glasses for a habitual polishing, and replaced them before answering. "Well, the material I have here implies that vengeance demons may be immune to physical injury-or at least highly resistant, and capable of healing very quickly."

Buffy raised an eyebrow. "Okay; so we've got a magical Wolverine. Good to know."

Giles' brow furrowed. "What does a wolverine have to do with a vengeance demon?"

Buffy shook her head. "Nevermind; it's Xander-stuff."

Giles nodded understandingly, putting the matter out of his mind with a playful jab at the absent American boy. "Ah, yes; the paragon of literature and high culture commonly referred to as comic books, I suppose?"

"Pretty much." Was the response.

There was a brief silence while Giles paged through the tome in front of him thoughtfully, but it was broken when he closed the book with a crisp 'snap.'

"I am going to search through some previous Watcher journals to see if any may have discovered how to defeat vengeance demons." Giles informed Buffy as he rose from the table.

Buffy nodded "And I'll just keep reading…this." She gestured distastefully to the thick, old book she was trying to bull through.

"Good idea. Keep your eyes open for any other capabilities we may not be aware of; we don't want to be caught off guard." Giles recommended to his young charge.

"You got it, Watcher O' mine." Buffy replied, not even attempting to disguise the lack of enthusiasm in her voice.

###

"Remember, we already had lunch at school, so we're not planning on having it here. Complete your assignments while you're here, and don't do anything stupid." James called out to the freshmen students who were disembarking from the school bus. His voice came across as put-upon and irritable, for a very good reason. "And don't forget the buddy system!" He reminded the underclassmen. He glanced over to see what Willow and Xander were doing.

"And naturally; I'm the only one without a buddy." He muttered to himself as he walked over to the other two demon-fighters. "Come on, you two, break it up. We're supposed to be the responsible adults here." There was no response. "And being the responsible adults includes _not_ making out like the horny teens you are!" His voice rose toward the end of his small tirade.

The two broke out of their passionate embrace. Willow at least had the grace to look embarrassed-it wouldn't take much more for her face to match her hair for blushing, James thought, amused-but the new Xander just glared at him for taking him away from Willow.

"You know, maybe you two shouldn't be paired up for this." James thought aloud. "I mean, like I just said; we're supposed to be the responsible, mature ones. But if you guys are just going to be acting like this the whole time, I don't think I can count on you. How about Willow comes with me, instead? That way everyone will be a little more reliable when it comes to work." Okay, so that was a lie and he knew it. There was no way that James himself was going to be focusing on work with Willow _right there_…but at least he wouldn't be making out with her the whole time.

Xander's eyes narrowed in suspicion and anger as he took a step toward James. "Why are you separating us again?" He asked, voice low and threatening.

James stood up a little taller and looked him dead in the eyes, unintimidated. "Because you're not reliable together right now. Not until you get yourselves under control."

Xander shook his head. "I don't think so. I think that you're trying to take Willow away from me." He accused, eyes flashing dangerously.

James gave the clown a derisive look. "Xander, you're being an idiot right now. This isn't a permanent situation; once we get back you guys can spend as much time together as you want. I just think that for now, you should watch out for one group of annoying freshmen, and Willow can help me keep an eye on the other."

Xander took a step closer, trying to loom over James. "You'd like that, huh? Some alone time with my girlfriend."

James shook his head angrily. "Okay, that's it, Xander. You've been a jackass all day, and now it's time for you get over yourself. Can you do that? Or am I going to have to help you?" He took a step closer himself, so close that James' and Xander's chests were lightly brushing.

"Um, guys? Please don't fight! Please? Violence is very much of the bad, remember?" Willow squeaked out, trying not to panic. The two males backed off from each other…for about an inch.

James contemplated his antagonist, and then gave a derisive snort. "No way. I'm the mature one here; I'm not going to give you the satisfaction of starting a fight." He turned to leave, following the path of one of the small groups of freshmen.

_Geez, why is Xander being such an ass today? First he completely ignores Buffy, and now he's acting like Willow is entirely his and has no will of her own? I used to want them together, at the very least to make Willow happy, but if this is what happens when Xander gets a girlfriend, maybe we're all better off with him single._

It was as he walked away that he heard the last thing in the world that he wanted to hear.

"What was that about? Trouble in weirdo paradise?" A scathing-and unfortunately familiar-voice gripped his eardrums.

He spun around to see his normal school antagonist wearing a camera. "Cordelia? Great; just what I needed. To have the Sunnydale High Harpy on my back while one of my friends is being such a complete ass." He blew out an irritated sigh and girded himself for the coming conversation. "What are you doing here, Cordelia?"

Cordelia delivered a look that was calculated to be able to cut down the majority of an entire high schools' self-esteem and social standing. "For your information, McAnon, I'm here because the school Yearbook class decided to put this little nerdy field trip in this year. Otherwise, you can bet I wouldn't be in a mile of you."

He sighed. "It's too bad that the school isn't more than a mile long, then, huh?"

The Queen gave a spiteful chuckle. "Finally something we can agree on." She continued past him, traveling toward the reptile house.

Sighing, James turned around and purposefully walked the opposite direction. "Well, this is turning into a crappy day." He muttered as he entered the mock-jungle portion of the zoo where they kept the cages for the big cats.

"And I can expect this type of thing for the rest of the year? Maybe I should have just let Snyder expel me." James mused aloud. Deep down, though, no matter how much he talked and joked about it, he knew he wouldn't have been able to. Not because he particularly cared for school, but because if he hadn't shown up, Willow and Xander would have been punished too. And while he didn't particularly like Xander at the moment, he wouldn't have wanted to ruin the guys' future by getting him expelled from high school, even now. To say nothing of Willow.

James sighed again. Overhearing him, a stranger's head turned from where he was admiring a lion. The stranger was tall, dark-skinned, bald, and wore a suit. He had an elaborately decorated gold ring on his finger, and his eyes were a peculiar shade of brown that flashed gold in the sunlight.

Raad approached the young man.

"You seem…troubled. Why? What is wrong?" Raad asked, affecting his 'concerned foreign tourist' airs.

James shrugged. "I'm just having a bad day. Nothing big. Thanks anyway, though."

But Raad persisted. "Why? Has someone wronged you?"

James hesitated for a second before nodding. "Yeah. A friend of mine just turned into a complete jerk overnight, it feels like."

The disguised Djinn raised an eyebrow. "How would you rather things have gone?" He asked.

James shook his head. "Well, better, but it isn't like imagining that it's different is going to change anything."

The stranger-to James, anyway- nodded his head. "That may be true in the literal sense, but thinking of a happier time can often make one feel better."

James nodded. "I guess you're right. I think that if I could, I'd make Xander go back to the way he was…even just yesterday. Instead, now he's ignoring Buffy, and he seems to hate me, and Willow's just too caught up in the man of her dreams to notice how strange he's acting." James' voice carried a tinge of bitterness to it at the end.

Raad could feel irritation welling up inside him. It was almost as if the child _tried_ to avoid using the word 'wish!' If the Djinn hadn't known any better, he would have suspected the young boy was doing it to spite him.

James shook his head and started to leave the Djinn behind. "Thanks, but I don't think that really helped much."

As he left the stranger behind, he couldn't stop his mind from drifting back to Willow and Xander, his resentment of the other male resurfacing.

At this point he honestly couldn't tell whether he was irritated at himself or Xander. "Probably some combination of the two." He muttered, lost in contemplation.

He stopped walking, and gazed into the cage of a jaguar from South America. "You know what I want?" He murmured to himself. "I wish that something would get my mind off of Willow."

Just as he uttered those words, he heard a triumphant laugh boom out from behind him. Whirling around, James saw the black stranger from before facing him again.

"As you wish!" The black man called out with a smile. James couldn't believe his eyes as the man simply…_faded_ from view, leaving only what looked like grains of sand on the floor of the mock-jungle path.

James stared blankly at where the Djinn had just been, shocked. "I think I just majorly screwed up…" He muttered.

Then his world was shattered by an ear-drum piercing roar from behind him.

###

"Um, Mister Grets?" Sam Falen asked as he peered into the classroom of his Biology teacher.

The short, round, cheerful man with very little hair looked up in response. "Oh, Mr. Falen. Yes, please come in. How are you?"

"I'm alright. I had kind of a weird morning, but I'm alright. And the kids that hang out in the library with Mister Giles are really kind of weird too." The student said as he fully entered the room.

Mr. Grets frowned. "You know you shouldn't say things like that; I'm sure that they are perfectly fine people."

Sam shrugged. "Yeah. They're nice, but still…kind of weird. Talking about demons and stuff."

The teachers' frown grew deeper. "Why would they be talking about demons? Oh, wait; there was an incident of…mass hysteria, was it? In the cafeteria today?"

Sam nodded. "I didn't check the official report, but something strange happened."

"Alright. Well, enough idle chatter. I assume you're here about completing your contract for this class?" Grets asked.

Sam nodded again as he produced a thick packet of worksheets stapled together. "Yeah. I finished the packet. Does this mean I'm passing now?"

The teacher took the packet from him and flipped through it. "Technically it does not automatically mean you're passing. Although, you would have to try rather hard to fail this particular contract; since it's early in the year still, it seemed an easier one would be appropriate."

As the teacher began to go over the packet, Sam frowned and pointed to a plastic toy on the desk. "Do you like dinosaurs, sir?"

Mister Grets looked up, followed the boy's finer, and nodded. "Oh yes; very much! I find them fascinating. They're some of the only animals man knows of that have yet to be understood." He sighed as he put down the papers and picked up the toy allosaurus. "I just wish that humans could better learn how these magnificent creatures lived."

Just after he said it, there was a strange draft that blew through the room, followed by whispered words neither occupant heard.

###

Deep in the Sunnydale woods, the allosaurus woke up.

It didn't know what it was doing here. It had been hungry, closing in on prey, about to make the killing blow-when it had found itself in this strange place; a place that smelled of creatures the allosaurus had never encountered before.

It sniffed again, and found a new scent on the wind. Still a new creature, but less…strange than the ones that emitted an odd smelling gas as they traveled. The plentiful ones were smaller…softer…weaker.

And weak meant food.

###


	3. Descent Into Chaos

_Standard reminder; reviews would be nice. Thank you._

_ ###_

There is nothing quite like the roar of a fully grown Bengal tiger on the hunt.

To call it a roar would not have done it justice. The mighty war-cry that had just been unleashed could make hardened warriors flee, and the bravest of men cry out in terror.

It just so happened that, while certainly brave, James McAnon was still a 16-year-old high school student, and had not amassed enough life experience to fall into either of the two aforementioned categories.

His legs seemingly turned to liquid out of sheer unadulterated fear, James stumbled forward, falling heavily to the ground on his front. Ears ringing, mind a gibbering mess of warring logic and instinct, James barely managed to crawl to the side of the footpath. Rolling off the cement ground and onto the dirt-and-beauty-bark mixture-ground of the faux jungle, James struggled to make his way to the nearest 'tree.' It was only when he reached the tree that his logical mind reasserted itself, and he thought, _Wait. This is a zoo; the tiger is just in a cage._ Even as he came to this conclusion, however, doubts assailed him. _But then why was it so close?_

Screwing up his courage, James brought himself to peer around his tree and back out onto the path.

And what he saw there made his primal, lizard brain go absolutely nuts.

Because standing there, facing off, were two powerful predators. A lion and a tiger were glaring at each other, caught in a standoff over who would be the one to eat the prey they had both detected.

And, James knew without a doubt, that prey was him.

Even as a small part of his brain was wondering why the zoo had placed a lion in the jungle exhibit, he was trying to calculate a way to escape.

Neither of the big cats appeared to be backing down, both willing to fight to claim him.

"Glad to know I'm so tasty." James muttered to himself as he began a plan. _When they start fighting, I'm out of here. I'll try to alert an employee or something to the fact that big, hungry predators are roaming around here. Then, I'll make sure Willow's safe. And Xander too._ He added the last bit almost reluctantly.

Then, suddenly, each letting out earth-shattering roars, both of the feline predators lunged at each other. Colliding in mid-air, the tiger and the lion hit the earth again with a mighty crash.

Fairly confident that both cats were intent on each other-it was almost impossible to be completely confident about anything when one of those was after you, James was finding-the actor bolted from his questionable hiding place behind the fake tree, running for the end of the exhibit that he'd been heading for before his wish.

James felt relief flood through him when he realized that the sounds of the feline battle were fading behind him. The smile on his face grew even bigger shortly after, when he rounded another turn in the path to see a pair of white double doors ahead of him.

"Whew! The exit to the exhibit. Looks like things are starting to look up." He commented as he jogged down the path toward the exit.

The universe seemed to be running on irony that day, for almost as soon as he said that, he heard a high-pitched growl from behind him. Not wanting to turn and lessen his ability to move toward the doors, James glanced over his shoulder-to see a jaguar running full-tilt at him.

Turning back forward, James broke from a jog into a dead sprint. Thoughts of activating a chase reflex passed through his mind, but he quickly reasoned that it was already chasing after him already; slowing down would just get him killed.

He could almost feel his blood pressure rising out of fear as his eyes landed on the door-and noted that it was a pull door. He would have to stop and open it, thus wasting precious seconds in a life-or-death situation.

Breathing heavily, James did the only other things he could, really; he turned his thoughts to the heavens, and began an earnest-if informally phrased-prayer. _Please, God; help me get through this. And protect Willow and Xander, too; I know that we're doing your work in fighting the evil that comes spewing out of the Hellmouth, and you wouldn't just kill us off, would you? So please, _please _let me get out of this, to purge evil another day._

By the time he was done with his internal prayer, he was almost at the door. He could _feel_ the jaguar's breath hot on his neck as he reached for the knob. He grasped it, turned, pulled it wide to the right as he stepped to the left. He darted inside and slammed the door after him.

James breathed out in relief-and suddenly, it seemed his legs refused to support his legs any longer. Stumbling back, he slid down the door into a resting position.

This all took barely a few seconds. Thus, a second later, a heavy impact rattled the door in its frame.

"Holy mother of fuck!" James shouted in momentary panic, scrambling away from the door while trying to get his heart to calm down.

He took a deep breath, trying to slow his pounding heart. "Okay; time to make a plan. I need to find the others and get out of here." He frowned, and glanced around the room he'd ended up in. It was made up of mostly wood, and the floor was lightly covered in sand. He could hear what he guessed was a recording playing beach sounds; he could clearly hear the crashing of waves, and distant screeching of seagulls.

"Okay; first guess is I'm near the fish tanks. That doesn't sound too bad; maybe I can rest here for a little bit." Even as he spoke aloud, his mind had conceived an idea. Because the doors were pull doors, most animals wouldn't be able to open them. Add that to the fact that the fish should be relatively harmless, and he could bring the others here after he found them, at least to be safe for a little while.

"Now just to find where they are." He muttered as he regained his feet.

Deciding that the needed to get to know the layout of the zoo before he could start fetching people, he ventured deeper into the aquarium exhibit, hoping to find a 'you are here' sign, or at least a map of some sort.

###

"What is going on?!" Willow shouted in both wonder and terror as she nimbly side-stepped the charge of a young goat that had escaped from the petting zoo.

"I don't know, but we should find a place to hide!" Xander answered, before being cut off by a fluffy tackle. "Ahh! Help! Homicidal sheep!"

Willow ran over and put all of the strength in her slight frame into forcing Xander's fleecy attacker off of him. The bloodthirsty sheep rolled off of Willow's new boyfriend, hit the ground, bounced to its feet, and spun around to face them once again. Murder shone in its adorable eyes as it stared them down.

"We're having a stand-off with a _sheep_." Willow murmured incredulously to Xander. "Did we step into the, the Twilight Zone this morning or something?"

Xander shook his head, making sure to keep an eye on the sheep. "I think we left the Twilight Zone behind last year, Wills. We're in Hellmouth territory, remember?"

Willow nodded, and changed the subject. "Do we have a plan?"

Xander nodded confidently. "Oh, yeah; do we have a plan."

Willow furrowed her brow as she allowed Xander to shuffle between her and the hostile sheep. "Well? What is it?"

Xander's head didn't stop its confident bob until after he admitted to his lack of plan. "We run."

Willow nodded emphatically. "Running sounds good!" After a beat. "Run to where?"

Xander blew out a stressed sigh. "Um, okay; how about…" He did a quick surroundings check, trying his best to not let the sheep out of his sight. "Over there! That looks like a storage closet; we can hide out there for a while, until the animals leave." Xander pointed to a door to his right.

Willow couldn't find any alternatives. She'd even tried, not that she would have tried very hard if she realized that the solution she would be avoiding involved being stuffed in a very small space with Xander.

All she said, though, was, "O-okay."

"On three." Xander whispered. "One. Two. THREE!" His voice rose to a shout on the last word as the two Scoobies bolted for the door.

The sheep was after them in a flash, the chase reflex nature never gave it activating as it followed the fleeing teens.

However, Xander had failed to take any other animals into account. Something he realized to both of their detriment when the goat from earlier plowed into Willow's right leg, throwing her to the ground.

It was only a few steps later that Xander realized what had happened. He instantly put his feet down, sliding to a stop. He swiftly sprang back toward his fallen friend, arriving just after Willow succeeded in fending off a second goat attack with her feet. Grabbing her by the hand, he hauled her to her feet, and the two rushed the rest of the way to the door.

Xander reached the door first and flung it wide open. He was surprised to see that the room was actually a small office with a storage closet on the far side. With an internal shrug, he hurriedly followed Willow into the room, across, and into the closet.

There was very little room in the closet, and the two were pressed very close together. Willow had her head laying against Xander's chest, and she felt a minor thrill run through her as she realized that she could hear his heartbeat.

Willow raised her head, and saw that the door frame left just enough space between the door and the frame for some small light to enter. The illumination fell softly across Xander's features, and the teenage girl could feel her heart begin to beat faster, and her body begin to heat up.

"Are you alright?" Xander asked her, voice full of concern.

Willow found herself gazing deep into his beautiful brown eyes. "Yeah. I-I am; thanks to y-you." Her voice stuttered a little as her heart stopped beating, and started doing a drum solo in her chest.

A soft, genuine smile crossed Xander's face. "Good. Nothing gets to hurt my Willow; not if I'm around."

Willow wasn't exactly sure who went first, or if it was by some psychic mutual agreement, but suddenly, they were kissing passionately. Not the ordinary passion of two hormonal teenagers; this was the passion of two hormonal teenagers who believed they were in love and had just survived a narrow escape.

Xander deepened the kiss, and Willow responded enthusiastically. She pressed herself against him, into him, wanting to be even closer to this man she had carried a torch for since their mutual childhood.

Her hand fumbled for the door handle, and upon finding it, twisted the knob on the end into the locked position.

"Horatio; can you tell me what is going on outside?" El Reclusa Sangre inquired of his favorite lieutenant. "That is quite a racket."

"Ah, yes sir." Horatio nodded. It took some time for him to finagle a way up to the rafters of the warehouse, so that he could look out a window without coming into contact with sunlight.

"It looks like…chaos, sir. That creature of yours must be very powerful!" Horatio commented as he watched what looked like a zombie savage a very strange thing that looked like a weed had come to life, which was lashing at the zombie with everything it had. In the background, a green goblin-esque creature that Horatio recognized as a gremlin raced between the few cars in that area of the warehouse district, pulling wires and destroying the engines.

El Reclusa Sangre let out a quiet laugh, and gestured for Horatio to come back down. "That is the power of a wish-or possibly wishes-gone wrong, my friend. A Djinn loves to twist wishes. However, if you phrase a wish carefully enough that there is little to no room for misinterpretation, it can be a powerful force." He chuckled again. "Wish magic; the only type that can completely disregard all conventional rules of magic." A thoughtful expression crossed Reclusa's face as Horatio slipped a little when climbing down from the rafters, and burned his hand in the sunlight.

"Disregard all conventional rules of magic…" He muttered, and a diabolical grin took up residence on his face. "Horatio, do you know what I wish?" The vampire master inquired of his lieutenant.

Horatio cocked his head to the side and frowned, unable to see where his master was going with this. "What, sir?"

Sangre's grin grew. "I wish that vampires no longer suffered any ill effects from sunlight, without gaining any new weaknesses."

Vampires have a sense for the sun. When it is up, they can feel its presence, the constant threat, like a pressure beating against the wall of whatever lair or hiding place they choose to inhabit. It is a mystical awareness of the greatest threat that keeps a vampire from becoming too careless when the sun is up.

When the feeling of that pressure against the walls of the warehouse faded, Sangre's grin grew even wider.

"Horatio, could you please fetch one of the fledglings for me?" The master inquired.

Horatio bowed his head and walked away. "Of course."

A mere minute later, he returned, a hungry, impetuous-looking vampire in tow.

El Reclusa smiled at Horatio as he stood up. He calmly walked over to the two of them, seized the fledgling by the throat, and threw him bodily into a patch of sunlight.

All three vampires stared as the fledgling lay in the pool of golden death, completely unharmed by the suns' rays.

Sangre smiled as he turned and swept away from the two. "Thank you, Horatio." He turned to a small group of his underlings. "Saddle up, my men; I have a job for us to do."

Horatio followed his master, expression inquisitive. "May I ask what our objective is, sir?"

Sangre nodded, not breaking his stride as he responded. "You may." There followed a beat of silence where Horatio tried to formulate a response to his bosses' unexpected statement.

The boss in question let out a booming, friendly laugh. "Forgive me my joke, Horatio. Our objective is an object that I desire that is held within the high school library."

Horatio nodded. "Thank you sir. But, if we are just going to the high school, why do you need them with you?" He gestured to the group of eight vampires forming up on Sangre.

The sorcerous vampire raised a finger. "Remember, Horatio; the local Slayer attends the high school, according to our intelligence. I would rather not encounter her if I do not have to. At least, not for a while yet."

Horatio raised an eyebrow. "But surely you could defeat her? It would not be the first Slayer you'd have fought. They tend to be ill-prepared to deal with magic in a fight, if I recall."

Sanger nodded. "I would think that I could defeat her. However, do you remember what information you imparted to me on her when I entered this town? The Slayer has friends and allies, the first of her kind to do so that I am aware of. I do not have much intelligence on them, and I would prefer not to take chances. So, until I have taken precautions, I would prefer not to brace them directly."

Horatio nodded. "I see."

Sangre turned to his minions as they exited the building. He took a second to bask in the sunlight for the first time in over five hundred years-and possibly the last time; he didn't know what would happen with Raad.

Shaking his head, he returned his mind to business.

"When we get to the high school, five of you are to go through the front door and find your way to the Sunnydale High library. The remaining three, will come with Horatio and myself to attempt to find a back entryway into the library. If there is none, we will attempt to pass through the front entrance without being noticed by the Slayer or her Watcher via spell. The first five are intended to distract them, and any allies the Slayer may have at the moment. Your goal is to survive, and to keep them fighting. If all goes well, the rest of us will join you, and we can attempt to kill them as a group. However, if an ally arrives, or if either turns out to be mystically skilled, we will retreat after my team's goal is met. I do not wish to fight an enemy when I do not know what to expect, and as I am now. I am powerful, but remember this; there is always one who is more powerful than you." Sangre finished giving instructions to his minions, and set out for the school.

###

Buffy ducked under the haphazard blow her opponent shot at her, and swiftly counter-attacked via leg sweep. Her foe, however, used its one leg to hop over her own leg, and came down unharmed. The creature threw a punch at the Slayer with its one arm, but she avoided this one, too, by throwing herself back and away from it.

Given space, Buffy reexamined her foe. "Giles! What is this thing!?" She exclaimed with disgust and confusion.

Her ears caught the sound of old, thick paper flipping rapidly from several feet behind her, in front of the library doors.

"I am, ah, not entirely sure." Her Watcher sounded more bewildered than alarmed. "I have never seen a creature like this before, and I only vaguely remember hearing of one." He glanced back up at her. "But honestly, I can't imagine it being much of a threat, given the capabilities it has shown here."

Buffy frowned, looking her odd enemy up and down once more, still not entirely past the point of disbelief. "Well…you have a point."

The enemy she was facing was more bizarre than terrifying. It could most easily be summed up as half a human. Not half-human-half-demon, or half-snake, or whatever; simply half of a man. It was as if someone had drawn a picture of a person, and then cut it down the middle and removed the right side. And instead of blood, gore, and organs hanging out of the side that should be connected to something, there was simply a flat sheet of flesh across the part that should have been inside it. As a result of its unusual make-up, it only had one eye, one ear, one arm, and one leg. It traveled by hopping, and it was surprisingly agile.

"Then again, if all you did was hop around, you'd probably get pretty good at it too." Buffy muttered to herself.

The half-man hopped toward her menacingly, and Buffy strode forward to meet it. "I'm about done with you." She said aloud.

It took a swing at her again, and instead of dodging its blow, Buffy caught the creatures' single fist in a palm. She twisted it painfully, and the beings' half-mouth cried out in a strange gurgling grunt. It would seem as if the creature only had half of its vocal chords too.

Buffy continued twisting until her foe was forced to the ground. Then, she took out a stake and jabbed it into the half-man's head-or what it had of one, anyway. Blood spurted forth, and the creature laid still.

Buffy straightened up and turned to her Watcher. "That was way easier than it probably should have been."

Giles looked up from his book and spied the corpse. "Yes, um, well done, Buffy; bravo."

Buffy cocked her head curiously. "Find anything on it?"

Giles nodded. "Ah, yes. It seems that this creature is called a nasnas. It is an Arabian mythological creature, said to be the offspring of a Shiqq demon and a human."

Buffy nodded. "Any special powers or anything?"

Giles shook his head. "Not that I can find. It is simply a living half of a man."

Buffy raised an eyebrow, and then shook her head. "Well that's weird."

Giles agreed. "Quite."

The duo turned back toward the library-but Buffy's ears caught the sound of several sets of heavy tread. Turning around, she saw five tough-looking people-four men and a woman-walking deliberately down the school hall toward them.

They came to a stop before her. The one in the front-who was sporting a Mohawk that did not go with the structure of his face- opened his mouth to speak. "Slayer."

Buffy responded simply. "That's me. How may I help you?"

Much to the shock of both Slayer and Watcher, in broad daylight, the man's face contorted into the unmistakable and ugly visage of a vampire. The four others in his group followed suit.

Buffy stared, mouth open. "What the hell?! Did you guys forget the memo about the sun being _bad_ for vampires?"

The leader smirked at her. "It was. But a little…_wishful thinking_ did us all a world of good."

Behind her, Giles muttered a soft "Oh." of realization.

"So, Slayer; how 'bout a dance?" The mohawked vampire asked, before leaping at her.

###

James was cautiously making his way through the center of the park when he heard the scream. It was coming unmistakably from the direction of the Reptile House.

He cursed under his breath. "Great; just what I needed right now." Sending a quick prayer to God for some help, the faithful one jogged in the direction of the reptile exhibit.

The scream came again just as he reached the door. He flung it wide open-and saw a terrible tableau.

The reptile house was structured with a single walkway in the center, with exhibits in walled off, spacious alcoves on either side of the walkway, the entrances to which were a few feet off the ground.

Standing in one of the alcoves, with a rather thick snake wound around her leg and slowly climbing up her, was none other than Cordelia. On the floor in front of the alcove the teen-Queen of Sunnydale was standing in, a crocodile hulked menacingly. Scattered throughout the room were various other, smaller lizards. At the far end of the room, James could see what looked like a fully grown Komodo Dragon eyeing him hungrily.

"Shit." He whispered to himself. He glanced up at the sky, and muttered, "I asked you for help making things easier, not getting me killed." Then he redirected his attention down to a more earthly plane-and Cordelia's predicament.

She spotted him just then, and cried out, "McAnon! Oh my god, please help! If you can get me out of here, I'll…I'll give you some free fashion advice!"

James brought his hand up to his face in disbelief. "That's what you'd offer?"

Cordelia frowned. "Well, that's what you need the most, obviously. Why? Is it not good enough for you? Fine; I'll pay you."

James shook his head. "I'm not going to make you pay me, and I don't want fashion advice. It's just…really?"

"Look, just get me out of this!" Cordelia commanded.

"If I can." James said aloud as he began to think. _There are three predators in here that we really need to worry about. Earlier, getting them to fight worked with the big cats; but how would we do that with these animals?_

Then, he came to a possible solution. Not one that he liked, since it involved him being bait, but he didn't see another option at that instant.

He addressed the sky one more time, and said, "You'd better have my back on this one, big guy."

And so James took a step into the reptile house, and called out loudly, "Hey! You with the scales!"

The reptiles didn't understand human speech, but they didn't need to for his plan to work. All that he needed was to get their attention, and simply being loud did that.

The crocodile and the Komodo locked onto him at roughly the same time, and immediately began racing toward James.

This was where he had miscalculated. A common misunderstanding about crocodiles is that they are slow on the land. This may be true when a crocodile is in a resting state. However, when a crocodile wants to reach food, it moves faster than most would believe.

Cordelia saw the crocodile moving toward James way faster than she would have thought, and felt her heart sink into her stomach. Her supposed rescuer was about to get eaten. "God, I wish that I could get out of this myself!" Cordelia uttered as she tried and failed to wrench her legs apart due to the anaconda's immense strength.

If not for her rising panic, the cheerleader would have heard a low, mirthful laugh as the small breeze blew by. Then, too fast for the human eye to notice, something glowing seemed to fly into the reptile house from somewhere else, and enter Cordelia's body.

As it did, Cordelia suddenly felt a burst of strength. Confused, but not questioning, the cheerleader tried parting her legs again-and the anaconda hissing in pain as it was forced to relinquish its' suddenly powerful prey, or get ripped to pieces by Cordelia's new-found strength.

Feelings of confidence and incredulity battling within her, Cordelia suddenly felt…powerful, in a way she never had before. She knew the power of money, and the power of a well-placed insult or spiteful comment. But this…this was pure physical strength, and it felt good in a raw, primal way.

She heard a panicked shout, and turned her gaze back to James. He was trying his best to fend off the crocodile, but he was trying to stop its' mouth from closing on his leg, and even Cordelia knew that a crocs' mouth-closing muscles were incredibly strong. He had no chance.

But with her new power, she did. Without thinking, Cordelia leapt out of the alcove and toward her school-yard foe. She almost hit her head on the low ceiling, but had jumped just low enough to miss it.

Cordelia landed almost on top of the croc. Falling to her knees so that she straddled its' back, she reached into the reptiles' jaw and yanked James' foot out of the way. The crocodile's jaw slammed shut on air with a loud clap. Cordelia took advantage, by reaching down and throwing her arms around both of its' jaws in a bear hug.

James hurriedly scooted out of the reptile house while he still could. The door closed after him, and it wasn't long before he heard crashing noises, and what sounded like splintering wood.

Shortly after, silence fell. Then, there were three knocks on the door. He opened it tentatively-and out strolled Cordelia, not even breathing heavily, smiling, and without a scratch.

She turned to face him. "You know, I don't know what happened, but I feel great!"

###

While James and Cordelia were in the Reptile House, Buffy was still in the middle of the fight with group of five vampires. Two of the men were down, leaving one male flunky, the female, and the leader.

Buffy ducked under a fist, and spotted the incoming side-kick from the leader of the vampire crew. She raised her arms to block it-the instant that Cordelia made her wish.

Something that moved too fast for human or vampire eye to see-despite its' glow-flew out of Buffy's body, and instantly, she felt…weak. Off-balance and dizzy. Her arm was in position to block the kick still, but the impact sent her flying against the wall.

The male flunky pressed his luck, grabbing her, hauling her up and holding her against the wall, ready to bite. He raised his head, ready to plunge it down into her arteries-when a crossbow bolt lodged itself directly in his heart, and he turned to dust.

"Buffy, are you alright?" Giles asked, concerned, as he reloaded his crossbow, and took aim at the leader.

Buffy scrambled over to him, almost falling over several times. She reached him, and told him, "Giles. We have to run."

Her mentor gave her a confused expression. "What's wrong?"

"Come on!" The small blond may have felt weak, but she still managed to tug the Watcher down the hall a ways before he turned around and made his own way. He looked back at the vampire they had just been fighting-to find them nowhere to be seen.

Buffy didn't stop until she found a classroom well on the way to the other side of the school to hide in. She dragged Giles in, shut the door, and immediately began barricading it using desks.

Giles, concerned, grabbed Buffy's arm when she was going back for a third desk. "Buffy, we're safe. Now tell me what went wrong."

His charge met the Watcher's eyes, and he could clearly read undiluted panic in her eyes.

"Giles…"She began fearfully. "I don't feel like the Slayer anymore."

###


End file.
